Adapting to the Changing Landscape of SEO Techniques

The best practices for on page SEO are changing at a furious rate. Between the various Google updates and the elusive power of social media, getting a handle on effective SEO techniques is a challenge. Along with death and taxes, change is a simple fact of life. And to stay competitive, websites need to adapt.

A recent webinar by The Search Agency’s Grant Simmons addressed this shift in approach to effective search engine optimization. Simmons began by outlining five outmoded practices, once the standard for SEO, that have been consigned to the dustbin as a result of Google’s pronounced shift in promoting valuable content. Smart search gurus no longer:

• Cram their text with keywords
• Spin articles
• Create redundant content to support target keywords
• Pay for links
• Support bad links

The Future of SEO is Here

Check your website; if any of those SEO techniques are still in play, it’s time for a major update! The future, according to Simmons, is h(SEO) aka holistic SEO, which concentrates on understanding and optimizing for the best user experience possible. When you deliver a great experience, humans and search engine spiders (who are really just super-smart users) are going to take notice. On page SEO needs to pay attention to the post-click experience.

Forward-thinking strategists are now focusing on four key factors:
Relevance

• Offer content that connects with users
• Establish topic authority
• Create a site that can be crawled and indexed and meets data standards

Authority

• Build a brand with legitimate connections
• Become a thought leader
• Cross promote on targeted social platforms

Engagement

• Demonstrate post-click experience satisfaction
• Encourage user interaction to acknowledge the value of content
• Be perceived as an authority
• Enable social sharing

Analytics

• Use conversion testing to see what works
• Track results
• Measure what matters

It’s All About Content

As we’ve pointed out before, the current change in SEO strategies reinforces the notion that content is the new king. But the new paradigm is based on understanding the audience first. Know what the user needs without guessing. That means listening, being willing to learn, adapt and then deliver. The result: winning the search results battle. It won’t take a crystal ball to guess at what needs to happen. Just remember to:

• • • Understand the audience
    • Think beyond links
    • Leverage relationships
    • Engage beyond the click
    • Encourage share-ability
    • Prioritize
    • Track and measure to justify

Kathleen Gossman – Project Manager